Methods and apparatus are known for marking surfaces to enhance special events. The surfaces that may be marked include parking lots, playgrounds, and sports fields.
In one method that is used to create artwork on a sports field, a single stencil first is fastened to the desired area using weights or stencil anchors. Next, a pattern of small openings in the stencil are sprayed with an aerosol turf paint. Spraying of the small openings results in a pattern of dots on the turf. The stencil is then removed, and the aerosol turf paint, for example, is used to connect the dots. The large areas bounded by the connected dots then filled-in with bulk field paint. The method then ends with touch-up of the artwork as desired.
In another similar method, a single stencil is used that includes a pattern of large openings. Spraying of the large openings results in at least an outline of a bounded area that then may be filled-in, for example, after the stencil is removed. This method obviates the connecting of the dots.
A “paw stencil” is commercially available from Tru Mark Athletic Field Marker of Norfolk, Nebr., at www.athleticfieldmarker.com. The paw stencil is a single stencil made from a planar sheet of flexible film having a length of approximately fifteen and one-half feet and width of approximately seventeen and one-half feet and retails for $169. The stencil folds like a bed sheet into a two-foot by two-foot square for easy storage.